{Katie’s Picks} Building the Perfect Smoothie + Add-Ins

Smoothies can be a quick, simple and tasty way to enjoy a variety of nutrient dense foods but they can easily get mucked up with a ton of non-food ingredients and processed protein powders. I am always experimenting with ways to keep my smoothie nourishing and well balanced and that includes keeping the focus on the quality of the whole foods ingredients that winds up in my blender. Here are my top 5 smoothie makin’ tricks along with my picks for add-in’s and a glorious giveaway!

Top 5 Smoothie Making Tips

Keep the focus on the vegetables. A fruit centric smoothie, though loaded with nutrients can become a real sugar bomb! Aim to make your smoothies with a 60/40 ratio of vegetables to fruits. I love greens like kale, arugula and spinach as well as cucumber, bell peppers and even broccoli!

Use fruit as your sweetener. I rarely add sweeteners to my smoothies–instead I use fruits like berries, peaches, apples, pineapple and mango. Are your bananas going bad–don’t toss them! Over ripe fruit works so well in a smoothie and decreases food waste. Save money on frozen berries when their fresh counterparts are out of season.

Add protein + fat. The key to making a satisfying smoothie is adding some protein and healthy fat and that doesn’t have to mean reaching for a scoop of highly processed protein powder. Whole nuts and seeds as well as butters are great sources of plant based protein and healthy fat! Check out my picks below for other options as well!

Maximize your nutrient density! Smoothies are a great way to bolster your everyday nutrient intake. Experiment with add-in’s like fresh turmeric, green superfood powders, bee pollen and more. A few of my favorites that aren’t listed below include Gaia’s new product Turmeric Boost powder and Aloha Daily Good Greens powder which are both great for upping your nutrient density in a pinch!

Plan Ahead. I am a huge fan of the make-ahead smoothie pouch! Portion out smoothie ingredients in single serve freeze bags for easy, anytime use! Here is an example: fill a small bag with frozen mango, frozen greens and protein rich Manitoba Harvest Hemp Hearts. Come morning–you just add water and any other add-ins you love and blend it up! You could even use the “night before” trick! I simply fill my blender with all my favorite like grapes, greens, cucumber and peaches as well as a scoop of Nutiva coconut manna and some nuts and store it in the fridge overnight. In the morning I grab it, add water and give it a whirl!

I love adding in frozen banana or pumpkin puree, a little stevia, protein powder, and cinnamon. IF I’m having a smoothie in the morning, I really love adding matcha and vanilla extract. Thanks for the giveaway 🙂